Mixed Minds
by woundedowl
Summary: She had a life that met expectations, content with her work, never wanting to travel or explore. She had everything she could ask for, everything she thought she needed. Then one day her hand touched a crack and she hears it all. Now she understands. Now she can see. Timelines change, fix points burn and the universe shifts as she runs.
1. Chapter One- Prologue

Hello everyone, and welcome to my story, 'Mixed Minds', and I hope it is slightly more original then the last thing you've read! This is a Time Lady OC story, so everyone please say hello to Scellioviscoterostigiamata! Otherly known as The Calm.

Yes. Yes, I know she has a long name- I'm just trying to stick with what is normal for the Doctor Who world. This is only my second Time Lady series, so be a little forgiving.

The Calm, (Yes, just like the Calm before the Storm. It is a reference to the Doctor, you're good. So anyways, I'm trying to be sneaking, so don't ruin this for me.) She's the complete opposite of my last Time Lady, she's more like the people we heard about in the show. She's just an average stuffy woman, with the whole 'I'm better than you, because genetically I'm superior' attitude. Well, that is until her mind forcefully merges with the other voices beyond the veil. Hopefully you like her.

**Summary:** She had an average life, content with her work, never wanting to travel or explore. She had everything she could ask for. Then one day her hand touched a crack, and she hears it all. Timelines change, fix points burn, and the universe shift as she runs. OCTime Lady/Doctor

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any part of the Doctor Who franchise. All rights and reservations belong to the BBC corporation. And trust me, I've tried to change their minds.

Chapter One- Prologue

* * *

Scellioviscoterostigiamata of the house of Decom was very much part of the average majority.

She wouldn't say that she was boring, but then again she certainly wasn't anything extraordinary. The common standards of rules, laws, and expectations that ran her life were perfectly reasonable, and she found nothing worth changing.

She was of standard build and looks, only on her first life. She had a darker complexion, with dark brown hair and brown eyes, a little shorter than most, and wore the most common standard in fashion. She however, refused to ware those stuffy high traditional collars. She was a working woman who had no need to walk around in such expensive and fancy attire. Other then to formal traditional family ceremonies, those terribly itchy things were avoided at all costs.

She was a middle class fifth level technical mechanic, a lower born citizen of a smaller and less significant house. She lived in the third largest city on Gallifrey called Sullec, next to the ancient mountain peaks of the Lost Hills, and she had a small little home only a few streets away from where she worked, on the edge of the inner city.

She lived alone now, still too young for marriage, still technically barely an adult, but beyond the age to live with relatives. She was only one hundred and six years old and she could count the amount of friends she had on one hand. Her work was rather enjoyable, her coworkers were fairly polite, though there were a few that had some interesting quirks. They had started to refer to their jobs as 'The plumbers', a word she only recently learned was Human in origin.

She had heard of it before, the little rock had somehow become a recent obsession in the underground community. It was spoken in hushed gossips next to the infamy of renegades such as The Lord Doctor or The Lady Rani, on par with criminals such as the sociopath Lord Master.

Oh yes, she had heard the whispers of that species.

The Humans.

They were talked about constantly, how they might one day create their own sets of laws, who may even defy their own, with a future so in flux that even the most skilled of soothsayers not able to see even just one solid fixed moment in their timeline. The young planet called Earth. It was a level five planet in her current timeline, small in size and orbiting only one sun, with blue skies and green grass, that had sentient ape-like humanoids that were strikingly similar in appearance to them.

Why anyone would be interested in such a strange place, she really couldn't understand.

Blue sky? And green grass? So very, very short life spans, extremely so. They didn't even know how to see time, or feel the turn of the universe under their own feet. How abnormal even for her standards.

She might not be an official Observer of Time, her title of Lady was just a formality given to her by family, but she was not sheltered either. She had finished the required fifty six years of schooling, but never returned to learn how to become a pilot or an observer. She was called a Time Lady simply because it was easier for everyone to say instead of 'Partitioned Gallefrenian underclassmanship' like it was stated on her certificate. Everyone went to school, but in reality only a select few ever truly became Official Time Lords and Ladies of Gallifrey. Everyone else were also called Time Lords simply because it was the polite thing to do.

Like any other of the eleven point six billion other people on her planet, she was perfectly fine with letting Old High Gallifreian politics continue the way they have for millenniums. She enjoyed the complexities of her life on her own, in her own city, in her own neighborhood.

Scellioviscoterostigiamata was content. Perfectly content with her life.

She was happy with what she had. She might not be the most intelligent, nor the wealthiest, and maybe not even the most recognizable to anyone else, but that was fine. Her time lines were simple, her past met expectations, her present was comfortable, and her possible futures all looked peaceful. There wasn't anymore that she needed or wanted in life.

So, when she was called into the Main academy in the inner city to fix a supposedly average problem for work, she didn't think twice about it.

"You're attendance is off." The clerk at the front office scowled, tapping away on the device around his wrist. He plucked the tablet off the counter and handed it to her with a huff. "What type of business are you running where any self respecting Lady or Lord can be late?"

"My apologies." Scellioviscoterostigiamata dryly muttered, taking the tablet with a tight frown. It would not do to scowl at a client. "There was traffic."

"Acceptable as it is, simply get to work." He snapped, pointing towards the doors to the left with a huff, and lifted his chin to look down at her. "The Observes will be here in sixteen clicks, I want the Schism to be presentable by fourteen. They're high priority clients, if you fail this it's on your company."

"Yes sir." She looked down at the tablet, scanning the information before fumbling, blinking in confusion. She raised an eyebrow with a frown as she looked over the schematics again.

Wait. That couldn't be right. What was this?

"A crack? On the schism?" She looked up at the clerk in confusion, "How did that happen?" He glared before waving her off.

"Isn't that your job?" He snapped before turning away to do business elsewhere.

What a swell man indeed. She avoided rolling her eyes until she left the room, tucking the tablet under her arm. She never liked dealing with higher born individuals, they were always so rude to others such as herself. Too much self righteousness and power always brought out the worst in others. It didn't matter how advanced a civilization became, there would always be the need for people with mundane jobs like the one she had. There was no reason to be rude about it.

She had already taken out her tools from her belt before she reached the room, reading the information one more time. She bit her lower lip as she squinted at the diagram, turning it different directions before giving up. She looked up at the machine in the middle of the room with hesitant eyes, the rest of the room was empty except for the large oval ring right in the center, the glowing blue vortex swirling inside of it.

The infinite Schism, a fixed open tear in the time vortex. Every potential Time Lord and Lady looks upon it at the age of seven. Some became memorized, some become lost, some were inspired, some go mad, others run in fear. It was the most important day of anyone's life since Lord Rassilon became a god and founded their society millions of years ago.

Scellioviscoterostigiamata rolled her eyes as she made her way into the room.

On the other hand, some simply yawned and turn away from the Schism, asking the adults for something to eat out of boredom. She did get quite the spanking from the headmaster and two semesters straight of after school detention for that.

Her eyes focused on the far left corner of the ring, near the ground and she cringes.

Yes. There was a crack. it was a long jagged black mark across the metal surface, going right along the curve and almost touching the vortex.

"How does _that_ happen?" She hisses as she approached the Schism, slowly making her way to the side, being sure not to stare directly into it.

She was in no mood to see everything as it was, has been, or could be without control of her actions at the moment. She was at work, thank you. She pulled out the subparticle nanogen scanner from her vest, holding it up over the mark as she bit her lip again. She frowned as the readings came up on the screen.

She jumped in surprise at the high marks, a maroon warning box blinking urgently on the screen. She snapped up to stare in shock at the schism before growling.

"I can not believe that Lord! I am not going to hurry my repairs, It's the infinite Schism! Ridiculous! Fix it in only fourteen clicks, is he serious?" She scoffed and clicked away on the scanner, finding the right frequency before setting it down next to her.

She leaned in closer, glaring at the black mark. It looked like some child had gotten ahold of a knife and haphazardly swung it around multiple times.

She glared at it hotly, daring it to disappear. It would sure as Rassilon make her life easier.

It was a real crack, and from what she could tell from her scans it was exponentially deep. It was a crack on one of the most unbreakable substances in the universe, and before today she would have said it couldn't happen. But there it was. She had never heard of this happening before, ever. Not once.

"How?" She whispered as she brought her face down to the anomaly, only inches away from it. She squinted her eyes and turned her head to the side, bringing a hand up as she tried to understand.

"Where did you come from?" She spoke softly in wonder, slowly tracing a sharp edge with a finger.

**CAN YOU HEAR **

She was not prepared for the voice that ripped through her conciousness, the sound as if the entirety of Gallifrey had asked her a single question at the same time, billions of voices shouting in union.

The crack on the schism shot forward, and with a hiss sliced into her hand as black claws seared her flesh. She jerked back with a pained yelp, stumbling to her feet as lights burst behind her eyes, accidentally kicking her tools away as she stumbled back blindly. As her sight wavered, she stared in shock at the Schism, the room spinning and dimming in and out. Where the crack used to be, the metal was now completely smooth and unblemished, no sign of the previous damage.

She flinched as searing heat traveled up her arm and she looked down at herself, opening her hand with a hiss.

The black crack glowed ominously against the blistered flesh of her palm.

"Wha-!" Scellioviscoterostigiamata let out a croak before her throat slammed shut, her face twisting in mute horror as she fell to her knees.

Pain!

She let out a short wail as she dug her unmarked hand into her scalp, squeezing her eyes shut as lights blazed under her eyelids. There was so much pain! The pain! Pain pain pain pain! She clawed at her hair as colors shot through her mind, feelings, touches, smells, emotions, movements, fears, hopes, dreams, wants, dislikes, the smell of the rain.

The touch of cool metal against warm skin.

The sight of snow for the first time.

The annoyance of missing an important date.

The joy of laughing with a loved one.

The sound of fireworks.

The taste of midday ice cream during the summer.

She gasped loudly as a kaleidoscope of colors exploded behind her eyes, different parts of her brain firing off in union. Everything was moving chaotically without control as she tried to curl away from the searing agony running through her.

Stop! Stop it! Just stop! Please! She cried out as her hearts burned, and there was just too much noise, too many sensations all at once, too many memories all trying to come to the surface, too many thoughts. Too much. It was too much! Too much pain, too much-

* * *

_A twelve year old girl sat in front of her television, watching wide eyed and in wonder at the show in front of her._

_The woman on the screen trembles near the doors of the TARDIS, looking around at how huge it was compared with the outside. The Doctor is wiring up the head of the Auton._

_"You see, the arm is too simple, but the head's perfect."_

_The woman, Rose, still looks overwhelmed._

_"Woah." The young girl, Alyce Johnson, gasps, bringing up her controller to pause the screen. She'd never heard of this show before, simply stumbling onto it on a casual Saturday and deciding to watch it because there wasn't anything else to do. She stares at the background of the ship in amazement. _

_"This... this is cool!"_

* * *

_A boy around fourteen is laughing in front of his computer, on the sixth hour of his marathon. He has a bag of chips and a cat in his lap._

_On the computer screen there were three people huddled in a corner, surrounded by gas-mask people, who seemed hesitant to advance._

_"Go to your room!"_

_The gas-mask people cook their heads to one side, and Rose and Jack look at one another is a mixture of terror and confusion._

_"I mean it! I am very, very angry with you. I am very, very cross! Go. To. Your. Room!" The Doctor points violently in no particular direction, and miraculously, all the gas-mask people turn meekly away. They walk off, Jamie leaving the room._

_"Of course that works!" The boy, Michale Lasik laughs, shaking his head as he takes a bite of his chips._

* * *

_"You picked last time!" Chelsie snatched the controller from her husband, glaring at him as went for another action thriller. "It's my turn."_

_"But you always pick the weird crap." Mark whined, grabbing for the Netflix controller. Chelsie huffed, sitting farther away from him. _

_"Yea well, not this time." She quickly scrolled down, clicking on foreign series."My friend from work recommended this. Apparently it's like Firefly. Just you know, English."_

_"What's it called?" He sighed as he reached for another drink, and she shrugged._

_"Something called, 'Doctor Who."_

* * *

_"Hey..." Megan looked up from her desk, seeing her best mate chewing on her pencil next to her, watching her instead of doing the assignment._

_"Yea? What is it?" Ashley grinned, picking up her sheet to show her a drawing of a weird alien on the side of the page._

_"Remember that show I was telling you about earlier? Doctor Who?"_

_"Yea?"_

_"Taylor and Nicole are coming over to see it. And you, like, promised you'd give it a try. Come on, watch it with us tonight." She laughed at Megan's exasperated look. "Really, you'll love it! I swear!" She groaned, waving her off._

_"If it gets you to stop talking about it?" She nodded, and Megan shrugged. "Sure, I'll give it a whirl. It's not like it's going to be as weird as that last thing we watched."_

_There was a long, tense pause._

_"It's not... Right?"_

* * *

**CAN YOU HEAR**

She was burning up! She screamed as loud as she could as she crumbled to the floor, curling into a ball. Tucking her head into her knees she whimpers, crying as her brain spasms.

Neuron fire off rapidly, her muscles jerking uncontrollably as she bits her tongue. The subparticle Nanogen controller beeped rapidly on the ground, all the warning signs flashing on the screen.

She's seizing. Violently.

* * *

_There's two people in their early twenties, both hiding behind pillows on the couch, peaked out to watch in mute terror._

_"And That's it, I'm afraid. There's no more from you on the transcript, that's all I've got. I dunno what stopped you talking, But I can guess. They're coming. The Angels are coming for you. But listen, your life could depend on this. Don't blink! Don't even blink. Blink and you're dead. They are fast, faster than you can believe. Don't turn your back, don't look away, and don't blink! Good luck!"_

_"No! Don't, you can't!" Sally hissed at the screen as it turned to static, Larry behind her standing up._

_"I'll rewind him!" He sprung forward as Sally backed away, both their faces pale._

_"What good would that do!?" She hissed, before frowning. "You're not looking at the statue?" They both look at one other as they froze._

_"Neither are you." Larry whispered._

_They both quickly look behind them, only to see the statue is far closer, it's face distorted into a menacing snarl._

_"NO!" The man, Joshua, screams loudly from his spot on the couch, throwing the pillow at the television as his girlfriend violently stands up, bolting out the room._

_"I'm not watching this! I'm not watching this! This is too freaking scary!" Alex hisses and she's already in the kitchen on the other side of the house._

* * *

_A little girl, nine years old is watching the show without blinking, her two older brothers sitting on either side of her._

_The Doctor is placed in the chair within the Pandorica and clamps are placed around his wrist and ankles. A large yank comes down over his shoulder as he struggles, his enemies standing at the opening to gloat over his end._

_"You lot... Working together, an alliance. How is that possible?" He croaks._

_"THE CRACKS IN THE SKIN OF THE UNIVERSE." The closes Dalek speaks first._

_"All reality is threatened." The Sontaran growls._

_"ALL UNIVERSES WILL BE DELETED." This time a Cyberman speaks, and the Doctor gulps as he yanks at his restraints._

_"What? And you've come to me for help?"_

_"No." The Sontaran hisses, pointing at him with hate. "We will save the universe from you!"_

_"From me?" _

_"All projections correlate. All evidence concurs. The Doctor will destroy the universe." The Cyberman spoke as the Doctor's eyes widened in horror._

_"No, no, no. You've got it wong!"_

_Diyora gasps as the show suddenly stops, the television freezing on the Doctor's horrified face. She whirls around to see her father standing behind them, a frown on his face. He his stroking his beard, and his traditional indian garb contrasting their mothers contemporary English home. _

_"Didn't I say you tree, no T.V until finishing chores?" Their father snaps in broken english, still not quite as good at it as his children. Yet._

_"But dad!" Her brother, Javahl whines, "It's the season final-"_

_"No buts!" He points with a glare, shooing them from their spots. "You tree! Up! Clean!"_

_All three of them groan as they stand._

* * *

_"A what?" The man behind the desk asked sharply, tugging on suit in agitation._

_"An alien." One of the three men across from him spoke, the other two nodding almost in union, both holding a duplicate script of the first episode._

_"An alien?" He raised an eyebrow, picking up the script again. "A historically accurate, educational show with an alien?"_

_"His granddaughter is there as well. There's also a space ship." He nodded again. "It can travels across the universe."_

_"It also travels through time." His cowriter spoke up beside him._

_"An accurate, educational show about an alien and his granddaughter, with human companions, travelling in a spaceship that can move through time and space." The third man finished, none of them braking eye contact with the man behind the desk. _

_There was a moment of silence as one of the head producers of BBC flipped through the script again, a frown plastered on his face._

_"And... What are you going to call this?"_

_"Well." He smiled, "We were thinking, how does 'Doctor Who' sound?"_

_He snorts._

_"I think it's not even going to make it through one season."_

* * *

**CAN YOU HEAR**

Scellioviscoterostigiamata doesn't know how she was able to stumble to her feet, her legs unable to find solid footing as she stumbled blindly. Her fingers were digging into her skin, clawing at her skull as she tried to get away.

The voices. The memories. The feelings. The emotions. The thoughts. The sounds. There were millions of them. Millions all speaking at once, moving at once, thinking at once. Everything was blending, shifting, merging and she couldn't comprehend where anything was, what anything was.

She could hear it. He could hear it. They could hear it. We could hear it. Us. Them. Our.

* * *

_"Doctor Who?" Melanie looked up, "What's that?"_

_"I hate the Silence! They're creepy as hell." Andre hissed at the dinner table, his little brother rolling his eyes. "There could be one here! Right now! And we'd never know!"_

_"I'm uncomfortable every time I walk by a statue... It's embarrassing really." Aisha sighed dramatically._

_"Hey guys! Doctor Who's on." Mc'cullan yelled for his siblings, the title sequence already playing._

_"Doctor Who!" Jacklyn Harmlett laughed, "It's pretty much a national pass time, isn't it?"_

_"Doctor Who!" A little girl, Chistian, laughed as the walked into the stadium, excited about watching the Palms. "Mom! It's the Doctor! The Doctor!"_

_"Hello Stonehedge!"_

_"It's a pretty terrible show. I mean the graphics are horrible."_

_"Doctor Smexy is more like it."_

_"It's amazing."_

_"No! Your bed time was three hours ago! Turn off the T.V, stop watching Doctor Who, and go to bed!"_

_"I think it's stupid. I don't see what all the fuss is about."_

_"Would you like a Jelly Baby?"_

_"I wish I had a TARDIS."_

_"It's Christmas! What are you doing watching that sci-fy stuff again?!"_

_"It's a bit Wibbily Wobbily. You know, Timey whimy?"_

_"And don't wonder off!"_

_"What I would give to be a companion..."_

_"I stopped watching after season four. Too sad for me."_

_"Can you believe the actor from Doctor Who ran with the olympic torch? What's his name again? Max something?"_

_"Time and Relative Dimensions In Space."_

_"Who comes up with this stuff?"_

_"Come on, It's Doctor Who!"_

_"Oh, Doctor Who's on..."_

_"The Master is the stupidest villain ever. He uses magic. In a sci-fy show!"_

_"Damn you Moffat!"_

_"Maybe just one more episode. Then I'll go to bed. Yea, one more. Or two. One more season."_

_"I'm still mad. Do Time Lords have babies normally, or do they do that whole, 'genetic splicing and everyone is each other's cousin' stuff? Which is cannon damn it?!"_

_"Can you shut up about that stupid show already?"_

_"Allons-y! Wait... What does Allons-y mean?"_

_"It's seriously depressing."_

_"He's kind of hot. I mean, the chin is a bit... eh. And those eyebrows! But he's still pretty."_

_"I still think the Daleks are the scariest things out there."_

_"Fantastic!"_

_"I'm not a fan."_

_"I'm going to meet John Barrowman!"_

_"Seriously? That show's still going on?"_

_"No! What part of not blinking don't you get?!"_

_"It Sarah Jane! Look look it's Sarah!"_

_"Exterminate! Exterminate!"_

_"Oh my god! Matt Smith's in New York! Someone, hurry! Buy me a damn ticket!"_

_"I... don't actually watch it."_

_"I couldn't believe it. When I got the call from my agent, I just stood there in front of my sink for the longest time. Then I finally said, 'I'm The Doctor'. It was amazing!"_

_"I think I'm a bit obsessed."_

_"Never missed an episode."_

_"I rather watch Downtown Abby."_

_"I'm in love!"_

_"I was only able to get through three episodes before I gave up."_

_"I miss David..."_

_"It's scary!"_

_"I don't want Matt to go! He can't leave!"_

_"Sonic screwdriver!"_

_"Mom! Can you check the basement for Daleks! They might be down there!"_

_"I can't wait for the new season!"_

_"Now don't start with that. You know I was never a big fan of it when it came out."_

_"Who's your Doctor?"_

_"Amy is so Hot."_

_"I love it."_

_"I don't like it."_

_"Who hasn't heard of Doctor Who?"_

_"Doctor Who?"_

_"Yea, it's my favorite. Comes on every Saturday, Doctor Who."_

_"Well, It's a show called Doctor Who."_

_"Doctor Who..."_

_"Doctor Who."_

_"Doctor."_

_"Who?"_

_"Who."_

_"Doctor Who?"_

_"Doctor Who!"_

_"Doctor..."_

_"Who!?"_

* * *

**CAN YOU HEAR**

"Yes."

The voices finally quieted, descending into a crescendo of a buzzing hive. The lights dimmed. The sounds wavered. The thoughts, the sights, the moments all slowed as millions quieted down for the first time together, finally moving as one. The feelings eased into a warm trickle as they gently caressed instead of thrashing wildly.

Everything simmered peacefully right under her fingertips. Everything fell gently, turning to blissful whispers.

She stood still in the middle of the room, her eyes closed as she listened.

Just listening.

Then, slowly, ever so slowly, she inhaled, letting the crisp cold air of the room fill her lungs. She could feel every movement as her hearts pumped, as her blood flowed, the feel of the clothes against her skin, the sound of the air moving around her, and she squeezed her hands.

Carefully, gently, she opened her eyes, slowly peeling her eyelids back with her head bowed in comfort. She looked out into the room. A room that was completely the same. A room that now meant so much more.

And so very much less.

"Yes."

Her voice sounded strange, foreign as it rattled out of her throat. It was exactly the same as it was before. Just not. She brought a hand up to her ear, holding it up against it, and listened.

"Yes I do." She hummed happily, a small content smile forming gently across her lips, "I hear." Another type of warmth spread over her cheeks, wetting her eyes.

The voices sung back. So softly, happy and barely there, but she could hear them.

"I can hear you." She laughed gently, her voice cracking as she closed her eyes again, silent tears threatening to fall. "I can hear. I can, and I understand."

The tears finally fell as she laughed in pure joy, lifting her arms to hold out her hands, basking in the sounds. The voices laughed, cheered, sung, questioned, understood, agreed, disagreed, danced, growled, argued, smiled, cried, and so so much more.

"I'll change it."

"Well are you done?"

She blinked at the sudden voice, automatically dropping her arms.

Turned around quickly, she blinked owlishly at the the clerk standing in the door way. He had another tablet and a rather harsh scowl on his face, not at all impressed, with a hand in a pocket as he shot her a rather disapproving look. His eyes looked between her and the Schism in distaste before he stood up straighter.

"I see that the blemish was taking care of. I hope you didn't cut corners." He spoke dryly as he looked down, typing another order into the tablet as she continued to stare.

"There is another Level five, as well as two level three mishaps on corridor eight. I need them fix by nineteen clicks." He walked into the room stiffly, snapping his orders off rather snippy as he reached her. His arm snapped out, the tablet held right in front of her. She didn't make a move to take it, instead tilting her head to the side as she stared unblinking at the Lord. He held back the sneer, instead narrowing his eyes in annoyance.

"Well?" He frowned as she didn't change, her unmoving brown eyes staring directly into his own. He wavered slightly, shifting on his feet as an uncomfortable chill seemed to enter the room. Had he been able to listen, maybe he could have heard their disappointment.

Maybe not.

Scellioviscoterostigiamata finally blinked once more, before taking a step back without taking the device from the Lords hand. He stared at her in confusion, his brows knit as he tried to understand what she could be doing as she continued to turn away, towards the opposite door.

"Wait. Where are you going?" His voice started to raise in volume as she clearly ignored him. "You're not finished yet! Hey!"

She gathered up her tools from the floor with a hum, before looking behind her shoulder to see the man sputtering in outrage. She gave him a clearly fake smile, her eyes gleaming dangerously.

"I quit. Sorry." She chirped happily as she slipped her tools back into her belt, before she gave him a quick wave. "But that's the thing though, I'm really not. I've got to run."

And she walked out of the room, the Lord speechless as she barked out a laugh, passing by the high priority clients on the way out. She pat one on the shoulder, giggling as the Lady gave her a confused glance at the obviously friendly gesture to a stranger.

She whistled a happy tune as she walked down the streets of downtown Sullec, repeating the Doctor Who Theme song as she kept bursting out in random laughter.

She was a new person, with a new future. A new past. A new her without having to regenerate. She was new, with a new purpose and a new voice. She would listen, she would hear the voices of those who wanted to help, who wanted to change it all.

She was The Calm, Time Lady of Gallifrey, and she was leaving her old timelines behind as they burned into dust.

Watch her run. Watch her, everyone beyond the veil, everyone who ever spoke the Doctor's name in happiness, in love, in hate, in anger, in sadness, in confusion, and in hope. Who knew him by his name, by his deeds, by his life.

Because she would change it all.

* * *

**A/N:** Soooo, hi. Hello. Um, what's up? That's the end of Chapter one. Now, onto the next one!

Please Review and tell me what you think? If you don't, how am I supposed to know what the hell I'm doing that you guys like or not?


	2. Chapter one in a half- Don't Look Back

**A/N: **Alright guys, hello again! This is more of an inbetween chapter like a, uh er... a second prologue? Yea, I'll go with that. It didn't feel right to keep writing after the end point of chapter one, but I can't add this scene to the official 'chapter two', so I'm posting it like this. I'm calling it chapter 1.5.

It's the scene of how she gets off Gallifrey. At first I wasn't going to post this, I even deleted the whole thing before panicking. I still had it on a previous file, which is incredibly lucky. It just feels right to keep it in the end.

Oh, and I changed the Cover Image. It's a picture of what the Calm looks like ( She is a singer named Laura Izibor, and isn't she just gorgeous!) and I think it's pretty close to what she looks like in my head!

**Summary:** She had a life that met expectations, content with her work, never wanting to travel or explore. She had everything she could ask for, everything she thought she needed. Then one day her hand touched a crack, and she hears it all. Now she understands. Now she can see. Timelines change, fix points burn, and the universe shifts as she runs.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any part of the Doctor Who franchise. All right and reservations belong to the BBC corporations. And trust me, no amount of begging seems to change their minds.

Chapter 1.5- Don't look back

* * *

It was easier to think clearly after she took a moment, her body and mind calming as she finally adjusted to the noise. She didn't go back to work, which she suspected wasn't much of a surprise. The tantrum that stiffly Lord in the Main academy must have spewed after she walked out most likely got her fired on the spot, if his beseeched look of enraged terror was anything to go by.

After that, getting off the planet was far easier than it should have been. It was embarrassing just how quickly she could do it.

She went straight home, grabbing a transdimensional bag, somehow stuffing the larger on the inside duffel to the brim with essentials. Putting on a thick pair of work gloves to hide the glowing crack on her palm, she kept her tool belt around her hip and headed out. Taking local transportation back into Salluc, the Calm wasted no time finding the nearest possible renegades and following them at a safe distance.

She made her way through the city inconspicuously, cutting corners while using the back alleyways to avoid any law enforcement, and by the evening she was already half way across town. As they walked towards the Great Burning lakes, she was careful, only treading lightly right out of the Lords sight. It was important that others took as little notice of the wayward young adult as possible, the fewer remembering a random young Lady passing by the better.

It was a relief that the majority of her antics, though bazaar and extremely erratic, were quickly dismissed by the few she passed. And it was clear that even though her timelines were a right mess to anyone who looked, with the continuation of her existence warped and splinted beyond recognition, entire chunks suddenly missing, no one was giving her more than a half hearted second glance before going on their merry way.

Why someone like her was allowed to walk around a major city with clearly mutilated timelines, just rippling with paradoxical loops after unfixed points, unchecked in the back alleys at dusk was rather shocking. She was completely unsupervised and somehow not causing mass panic.

Instead to her complete amusement, a very sweet old Lady in her last regeneration, close to twenty centuries old, commented on the Calm's chipper attitude and how nice of an evening it was. She laughed alongside, careful not to get too close and bother the frail women with anymore paradoxes than she could help. She was incredibly sweet after all. And the whispers thought so as well.

So the Calm continued on her way, whistling as she sought out some rather unique people, the renegades oblivious as she followed them into the lower levels.

She had to find a way out, and to do that she needed help. She had to get off the planet without permission, without the legal allowance or machinery, and she couldn't just steal a ship like others had in the past. The moment she walked into a building with a ship, she would be stopped. She didn't have the needed credentials like an official Time Lord had to even pass the front gates. It just wasn't as simple as the Lord Doctor made it out to be.

Pity. But there was still a chance.

All she had to do was find the right connections. And who better to help her find a renegade, than other equally interesting and nonlawabiding Lords and Ladies?

The ever interesting minorities.

It was a group that was avoided at all costs by higher level Gallifrey, talked about only in hushed whispers and never in any positive light. They were Time Lords of unwanted backgrounds. People without power, without a voice on their planet. The unspoken, the scorned, the _forgotten._

With eleven point six billion people alive and spread across the world there would always be those hidden in the shadows, those who couldn't follow the rules. The different valued, who thought differently, who were below average, or above what was acceptable, who didn't fit, the halfbred and mixed, the supposedly insane, and the criminals.

Like any other civilization Time Lord society wasn't any different.

Finding their hidden nearly legal lower level taverns might have been the hardest part of her entire escape. They weren't illegal per say, Time Lords were above petty crimes after all, but it was a common fact that only the most liberal and outspoken of the rebellious frequented such watering holes. Those who talked about criminals with fancy, Time Law offenders praised with high esteem, Observers scorned religiously, and anyone else who had the opposite views to those that held political office for thousands of years, came here to voice their opinions, free of spite.

Any self respecting Lord or Lady would never set foot in a place such a this.

So it was utterly new and exciting as she got a comfortable seat at the bar, a corner chair in the very back away from the diners. The room was packed for the evening and a warm minuet of half conscious thoughts filtering over her mind just as curious as she was interested.

She listened, looking around in wonder. So many different Lords and Ladies were in attendance, having pleasant conversations and drinking slightly legal drinks as they listened to foreign music, all seemingly at ease in a place outside of the highly regulated system.

Lords of all kinds were interacting with each other freely; Lowborns chatting with highers, rich having a drink with poor, academy students sharing tables with Elders, and Official Time Lords debating the latest news with Partitioned Underclassmenships without bias. Ladies seemed to forget their strict upbringings, letting their hair down and showing the skin of their shoulders and legs without much of a care, postures relaxed instead of immaculate.

No one thought of their lives outside of the door, for the high standards expected of their species. They were equals, all of them the same forgotten people. They were as much Lord and Ladies as as they were men and women, commoners instead of royalty.

More of a reason why she came here.

Why the Doctor believed himself peculiar, unnatural and unwanted, oh if only he knew. He may be scorned by the majority, but no group could really represent them all. The Lord Doctor was already a hero to the minorities, a basic _standard_ of what so many unheard voices of the population thought should be a common expectation. He was one of them, and they accepted his existence with open arms.

If the Lord Doctor had been aware of the community he had inadvertently joined after turning into the exact opposite of his carefully selected breeding he would have been flabbergasted. The amount of future generations he had won over even before becoming Lord President for a short time, a revolution started with words, with actions that were promised and then _done._ If he had seen the looks of understanding and compassion before running?

It was a shame he was born into the high and powerful house of Longborrow, one of the most pampered and politically preened family lines of the Main Capital city. He may have broken the law of time and tampered with events, but he still held the characteristics of the high and mighty, the ever _superior _productivity of his lineage. He didn't stand a chance, never once stepping into the hidden world right underneath his nose, unaware of the people kept hidden to the rich and the privileged. Old High Gallifrey did their absolute best to keep their way of life untouched, and no _minority_ would change that.

If only he had looked, broken away from the carefully crafted idealisms of Gallifrenian righteousness that had been ruthlessly drilled into his head since childhood he would have seen just how normal he was, how many people were like him. How different would his timelines have gone if he hadn't been alone in his travels, hundreds of other unseeable Lords and Ladies by his side, craftily sneaking their way past the stern eyes of the law to run amuck and play games?

It would have been the same for her, had she not seen across the veil, heard it all, felt it all. She would have been no different from the masses. The minorities may be looked down upon but to the Calm they were above her. It didn't take any otherworldly or profound accidental occurence to make them the way they are, they had done it naturally, coming to the conclusions she now understood only after it had been drastically shoved into her head.

That in itself was outstanding.

She chuckled under her breath, rubbing her scared hand fondly. This tavern was simply wonderful.

The meeting place of the forgotten was a large building, three stories and hidden in a small storage room. The bar was located precariously right on the outskirts of the courts behind the last street pole, the pocket dimension stored away behind a false door, and the way to open the entrance was simply to cough twice. It was a beautiful place, the architect resembling the nordic alien race she once read about from the sixty fifth vector in school. Very simple but elegant, with lots of green silk and ivory tusks. They even had a door handler who took their coats. The upstairs looked to be a common area, the main floor a diner and bar, and the basement for childish games.

Truly wonderful.

"Good evening Lady."

The Calm blinked, turning back around to see the bartender smiling behind his counter, a mischievous gleam in his dark eyes and a drink already in hand. He placed it in front of her as she tilted her head to the side, unsure what to make of it. He chuckled as she carefully picked up the glass, never seeing a drink as strange as this. She swirled the glowing multicolored liquid around as he wiped the counter in front of her clean.

"New? I could guess." He hummed as he picked up another glass, polishing it with a spare rag. "On the house then. Always nice to see a new face m'Lady." She took a sip with a smile, enjoying the tart burn on her tongue. "It's a rather enjoyable drink from a small moon called Pijluo, right on the edge of the eleven hundredth century."

"Calm. My name is the Calm my Lord." She smiled cheerily as she placed the drink back down. "And the pleasure is most certainly all mine." She purred as he gave her another laugh, and she had to resist putting her hand up to her ear.

The whispers and hums came back, moving gently from the crack and danced as they buzzed excitedly. The lights dimmed, the sounds wavered and she could hear as they caressing her mind. She sighed as the scar burned pleasantly against her palm, flashes of different emotions passing quietly in her mind. She took another long sip, the Lord giving her a rather warm smile as she gave a slight nod in return.

She took a quick peek into his timelines as he returned to cleaning.

Oh my, he was a elderly gentleman then, at least four thousand years old. His boyish good looks were very deceiving, and by the amusement he found in her flirting with a great great grandfather, he already knew that. He was viewed as an esteemed Elder by the community and he was only in his seventh regeneration from what she could see. A safe past with a comfortable future.

Maybe he could help her find a way out?

"Kyllaposteratheta then, Lady Calm. And you are quite the conversation starter in the kitchen." He chuckled, obviously humored as she took another sip. "Rather a young thing to be causing this much trouble, and that is a very disturbingly warped timeline you've got there."

She choked on her drink, coughing into a hand. It was so sudden, and the blunt acknowledgement of her obvious problems after passing so many people without another look was rather chilling.

She frowned and quickly placed the drink down, ready to leave before chairs started flying.

"But I'm never one to turn away a customer, especially one as amazingly daring as yourself, so make yourself comfortable." He chirped and her eyes widened as she stumbled. She stared as he gave her another mischievous laugh, before she nodded hesitantly.

That... That wasn't what she thought he would say.

Laws and abiding the rules had been drilled into everyone's head from a young age, into her head. And here was this Lord, and apparently his entire staff, just shrugging it off like she had accidentally tripped over the carpet. He hadn't just pointed out she was strange, but that she was _wrong._ Any other Lord would be dragging her out the back door by her hair by now.

He placed another glass under the bar with a chuckle as she studied him, confused as he put a plate of foreign food in front of her. The minorities were something else indeed. He shook his head at her unwavering stare and raised an expectant eyebrow.

"Just try not to change anything while in my bar, could you?" He sighed, scathing nervously at his chin. "Looped secondary paradoxes are such a hassle to deal with after a full shift. "

Who was she kidding. She was so a minority. Minorities were amazing.

She threw her head back and laughed fullheartedly, warmth spreading at the incredibility of them. The crack burned as the voices laughed as well, yelling, crying, whispering along with her. So someone finally noticed? The underground community was by far the most interesting people on Gallifrey. To not care that she was the way she was, truly amazing.

"I'll do my best." She laughed, running a shy hand through her hair. "No promises my Lord Kyllaposteratheta." Her shoulders shook with mirth as he hummed, shrugging off anymore worries.

"I'll take what I can get." He gave her one last smile before heading to the next customer. She laughed under her breath as she finished her drink.

Outstanding indeed.

"Is this seat taken?" The Calm looked up, a shadow appearing at her side.

His skin shimmered under the faint overhead lights, the light green hue emitting out as a slight hum. The Lord was wearing standard machinery factory issued sweats, his large goggles still around his neck, and he was clearly a lower born citizen. The half Lord was covered in black grim from head to toe, his short curly blonde hair spotty with the stuff as he patted his shoulder, a puff of smoke wafting out. He took off his thick gloves with his teeth before tossing them to his feet.

The Calm nodded, turning her head to the side in wonder and she had to resist poking him. She waved a hand in the air, dissipating the smoke that followed the other Lord, her nose wrinkling at the smell of crude oil and sweat. The Lord turned to look at her as he took his seat, his bright gold eyes having the same slight eery glow, and he gave the Calm a confident smile as he rested his weight on his elbows. Somehow he was able to sit closer than the Calm would normal have liked without being too invasive.

Oh, now she saw it. The cheerful personality and welcoming behavior, he was quite a unique fellow. As a half Alpotivci, a rare species known for their external otherworldly glow and high level telepathy, he was probably one of the last of his kind in the entirety of the universe.

"You're gorgeous." The Calm chirped, giving him a chashire grin that he quickly returned with a laugh.

"Not too bad yourself ma'am." He extended his hand in hello, the only part of him that was slightly clean. His skin shimmered like crystals against the light as the Calm grinned wider. She quickly shook it, eager to show equality between them.

Two more drinks were placed down in front of them, and he gave Kyllaposteratheta a quick salute as he chugged the iced beverage. The Calm sipped hers slowly, already starting to feel slightly warm from the last.

He slammed the glass down on the counter with a loud gasp, wiping the sweat from his face. He turned back to her, flashing her a toothy grin. "The names Gillio! Gillio of the house of no one. And might I be blessed with yours?"

"Lady Calm, house of Decom." She smiled as Gillio raised an eyebrow, quickly shrugged off his thick work jacket and dropping to the ground with a grunt.

"A Decom? I've heard of that family before. You're a majority?" Gillio tilted his head, scratching at his nose as he tugged on his goggles. "Now what brings you to a place like this ma'am?"

"Well, I heard something that changed my mind." The Calm closed her eyes, grinning at Gillio's intrigued look. She shrugged it off, running a hand through her loose bangs. "Figured it out is all. Just because something is repeated over and over doesn't mean it's real." She smiled gently this time, inhaling deeply as she instinctively listened.

Just listening.

The voices were quiet, murmuring and whispering in a gentle crescendo. For a moment there wasn't anything else but the millions together with their thoughts, sights, movements, memories as they trickle across her ear-

* * *

_"Ooh, look it's Doctor Who." Mallisa hummed, picking up the replica of the Sonic screwdriver from the counter. She tested its weight, holding it out for her brother to see. "What do you think? It's sixty five but it's pretty cool to have the Doctor's sonic huh?"_

_"Doctor! Doctor Doctor Doctor!"_

* * *

-Now that was the question, wasn't it?

She chuckled as she brought her drink up to her lips, raising an eyebrow in amusement at Gillio's confusion.

_"Really?"_ His voice went high, tapping away on the counter as he looked at her in a new light.

She nodded again as she took another larger gulp of her drink.

"Completely." She lowered her voice, leaning in closer as Gillio did the same. The atmosphere changed as his skin became brighter, the edges of his form blending as his figure shifted. She nodded, murmuring softly so only he could hear. "I've decided the only thing left to do is to run away."

"Oh?" She could still make out his facial features slightly as he leaned back, tilting his head to the side. "Sounds quite final ma'am. Rather extreme for someone who only just turned their back on society isn't it?"

"I wouldn't be the first." She mumbled and Gillio nodded at that, watching as Kyllaposteratheta placed another pair of different drinks in front of them both. "I'm trying to find a way around the Observers, someone who can assist me without having to make a big show of it." She looked between the glass and the Lord as she hesitated, picking up her new drink with a slight frown.

"Could you help?" He glowed like a small star, pointing at himself incredulously as he choked on his drink.

"Me? What could a half breed without power do for you?" He let out a nervous laugh, pulling on his goggles again as he quickly looked away.

She shrugged and looked back down as she swirled her drink with her straw, shifting nervously. "I have no idea. It was just a feeling is all, that you might be able to. Or know someone who could?"

"Hmm?"

They fell into a silence as they drank, Gillio slowly easing back into his chair as his glow tapering off, returning him to his normal hue. He frowned deeply, scratching at his nose before looking her over once more.

"Hmm." He ran a hand through his hair as he placed his drink down, turning back to her. "I might know a Lord..." She looked up, biting her lip as he rambled.

"Now I'm not saying I can help you! Breaking the first laws of the Observers is not my forte. I'm not a renegade, just a lowly halfbred forgotten here. That being said... I _might_ know a Lord that knows a Lord, that knows a Lord that knows a Lady that _might_ know a certain Lord."

"fascinating." The Calm couldn't help but answer dryly, sighing as she took another large swig, downing the new sweet liquor that burned her throat.

He hummed again, shoving a hand into his pocket as a small quirked smile appeared across his lips.

"Or!" She jumped at his sudden yell. He pulled something out, quickly holding it up to the light.

The blood red ruby was about the size of his thumb, perfectly cut and polished without a imperfection. It shimmered similar to his skin as he rolled it between his fingers, showing it clearly for her to see against the lights and he grinned, bringing it down so she could reach.

"This." The grin almost split his face in two as he held the expensive gemstone in his palm, and the Calm frown in worried confusion.

"That?"

"It could help you. It might not look like much but," He trailed off as he smirked, nodding to himself. "Yes, this could help you Ma'am."

She tilted her head to the side in bewilderment, not see it. She shook her head as she put down her now third empty drink. She needed to slow down, the heavy buzz of intoxication made her stomach warm and her eyes heavy. Maybe she wasn't understanding what the Lord was trying to get at because of her current condition?

"A ruby?" She sighed, running another hand through her bangs. "I'm sorry my Lord, but I doubt going into the jewelry business will-"

"Oh no! Rassilon no." He quickly cut her off with a laugh, waving off her assumptions with his glowing spare hand.

"This." He held the gem closer to her face as the Calm leaned forward, biting her lip as he continued.

_"This_ is a type thirty-nine time and relative dimension in space cargo ship. Nicked it out of a museum ages ago."

Her brows shot up as she looked between his hand and glowing eyes in disbelief. He chuckled softly, running a loving finger across the surface as it glowed against the hum of his skin. The Calm couldn't believe it as Gillio took the supposed ship and tossed it into the air a few times.

"Poor thing has a real problematic system error. It's been stuck in this form since production and according to the records it's the most temperamental ship ever built. Almost no one can get him to move correctly. So the Lords in charge just chucked it out, didn't even put it on display, just locked it in a cupboard and forgot about it." He twisted it between his fingers as she sputtered, pointing in horror.

_"That's a __TARDIS?"_ She squeaked as her mouth dropped open in shock, and Gillio frowned, tilting his head to the side.

"A what?"

"An unseeable who's just been walking around with a ship in your pocket?" She quickly waved off the question, not in the mood to get into the integrity of the Lord Doctor's acronyms, instead biting her lip as she looked around. She quickly scanned the room, noticing anyone who seemed interested in them. "And you haven't been caught yet?"

He shrugged, noticing her sudden paranoia and instead of worrying just kept twisting the gem in his glowing hand.

"Like I said, it's a very temperamental problematic thing, and completely and utterly outdated. It's just a failed project. I'll be surprised if anyone reports it missing, even if they notice it's gone." He chirped cheerfully as the Calm looked at him as though he grew another head, unsure if she should scream at the absurdity of the situation or kiss him.

"A type... Thirty nine?" She mumbled, finally getting her thoughts together quickly. "Isn't that older than the one the renegade Lord Doctor stole?" He barked out a laugh, his eyes ablaze.

"I know!"

She went to join him with a laugh, a smile tugging on her lips, until something caught her attention instead.

She frowned, looking back down at the ship in sudden apprehension. She couldn't help it, leaning away as she tensed her shoulders. Not that such a thing wouldn't be amazing, it would be exactly what she needed actually. Everything she was looking for and it was just inches away, right in reach.

However, something didn't feel right. It seemed just too...

Just too simple.

Something wasn't right.

"And you plan on just... giving this to me?" She nervously tugged on her hair, looking at him in confusion. "Just like that?"

He opened his mouth to say something before snapping it shut, his grin slowly slipping away.

His face changed, his hue completely diminishing until it was gone, and a frown wrinkled his brow. They looked at each other as Gillio's posture changed, no longer inviting or cheerful, and the Calm shifted anxiously in her seat as the mood of the room seemed to tense. They held each other's gaze as he pulled his hand back, moving the ship farther away from her.

"You're dangerous."

It was out of nowhere, Gillio's voice deeper and much more mature than he sounded before, and the blunt statement seared through her skin. The Calm tensed further, fingering the tool belt that was still around her waist, the cool metal of a heavy wrench under her fingers.

"And you're a criminal." He looked away from her finally and she took a small breath, slowing her hearts. He picked up his glass, finishing it off as he suddenly looked twice his age.

"Only a bit." She kept her voice even, keeping a hand at her waist as he nodded slowly.

"Me too. Just a bit." He didn't smile as he looked at her again, his now hollow gold eyes cold and lifeless compared to the friendly glow of before.

She leaned back, and the Calm dully noted that the half Lord was twice her size, the lean muscles from hard labor visible under his shirt. There was a clear edge to him now, a dark foreboding nature that hadn't been there a moment ago, and she only now noticed how no one else paid him any attention.

How the whole establishment of minorities were ignoring one of their own. In the room that just seconds ago was full of life, dozen of light hearted conversations buzzing as people enjoyed their night, there was now only silence. There wasn't one server on the floor, Lord Kyllaposteratheta standing at the ending of the bar with his back to them. No one turned their way, no Lord or Lady moving from their spot.

No one made a sound, but she could _feel_ them buzzing about. _Watching._

She should leave.

Now.

The Calm bit her lip again, looking quickly at the door behind the Lord. She shifted in her seat before Gillio leaned over, closer now.

"There are many a Lords and Ladies here just the same. We aren't known for our good behavior after all." His voice was like ice, low and barely audible as he stared, "But not like you."

She knew right then and there that he could see her completely. A painful shiver went down her back as her nerves stood on end, and she grabbed the wrench's handle. He was done with the charade, the kindly mechanic no longer needed to get the information that he wanted. There was nothing left for her to hide.

"No." The crack on her palm burned and she tried to ignore it, never breaking eye contact with clearly dangerous man beside her. "Not like me."

He pulled off his goggles, placing them down on the counter as she pulled off her gloves, doing the same. He raised an eyebrow and she leaned back, looking away.

"Why even do this?" He didn't lean back, still well into her personal space. He looked down at her hand that was around her wrench, studying her tense posture with a calculated gleam.

She stayed quiet, looking at her empty drink as she manipulated her liver enzymes, flushing the alcohol out of her system. It was not the time for her mind to be tampered, not in a room with what appeared to be powerful predator ready to pounce right at her shoulder.

She took another deep breath, leaning forward to match Gillio's stance, relaxing her posture as she closed her eyes.

The Calm finally blinked once more, bringing up her scared hand to rub against her temple. She looked back at him, her own unmoving brown eyes just as cold as she stared directly into his own. Neither wavered as an uncomfortable chill entered the room, and she listened intently.

She gathered her resolve, sitting up straight as she gave him a clearly fake cheerful smile, her own eyes gleaming dangerously.

"To change it." She chirped, slipping her hand back onto her belt as she gave him an empty laugh. Her voice sounded strange to her ears again, foreign as it rattled her throat.

"It?" A small frown tilted down his lips, and he looked not at all impressed as he put a hand in his pocket, shooting her a rather disappointed look.

"All of it. Everything." She leaned closer still, almost inches from the other Lord.

She brought her scared hand away from her face, a mischievous grin forming across her lips as another type of warmth spread across her body, warming her chest. Everything simmered for a split second, and she was no longer in the tavern, no longer sitting next to a Lord in his own domain. She could hear it passing her by, see it as it roused, felt it as it shifted.

* * *

_"There's a lot of things you need to get across this universe. Warp drive, wormhole refractors. You know the thing you need the most of all? You need a hand to hold." The tenth Doctor frowned, looking out._

_"courage isn't a matter of not being frightened, you know. It's being afraid and doing what you have to do anyway."_

_"The good things don't always soften the bad, but vice-versa, the bad things don't necessarily spoil the good things and make them unimportant." The Doctor kissed Amy's hair as she cried, trying to get her to understand._

_"Nobody important? Blimey, that's amazing. Do you know, in nine hundred years of time and space I've never met anyone who wasn't important before."_

_"Go forward in all of your beliefs, and prove to me that I am not mistaken in mine." And with that, the first Doctor closed his eyes and took his last breath._

_I am and always will be the optimist. The hoper of far-flung hopes and the dreamer of improbable dreams."_

_"Doctor Who?" Jacklyn chuckled at her husband. "Isn't that just a children's show?" He frowned at her as they ate breakfast, before sighing._

_"Sure," Chris shrugged, "If you think life lessons are only for kids."_

* * *

She exhaled, letting go of the tension as she finally completely relaxed.

"All?" His eyes dart between her and the hand she had rested on the counter before he sat up straighter, eyes narrowing as she curled her fingers into a fist.

"Yes." She didn't make a move, instead smiling widder as he narrowed his eyes in annoyance. The Calm resisted laughing, not wanting to antagonize him. But what did she have to fear here? He may be a Lord, but they were already heard. They were there, cheering, laughing, singing, growling, arguing, crying out.

She knew what needed to be done, what needed to be seen and understood.

With or without him, she was getting off this planet.

"God complex I see." He spoke dryly, shooting her a rather disapproving glance and she just shrugged.

"Not really."

"You're just going to run away? Fly away and go and nobody would stand in your way?"

"Yes?"

"And you think just because we're a bunch of _minorities _we're going to help? Just send you off with a wave and a yelp of good luck?"

"Something like that, yes I was hoping so. But," She finally blinked, knocking her knuckles loosely against wood as the shimmer subsided, and she found herself sitting in the tavern again. She sighed as the crack eased, the noises slowing. "In the end I'll come up with something my Lord."

They stared intensely at each other, the Calm smiling as Gillio stared blankly.

Suddenly Kyllaposteratheta appeared, placing down another round of drinks in front of them, one bright orange and the other blue, the first person to move since Gillio showed his true colors.

Gillio and Kyllaposteratheta met each others gaze, a silent message passed between them before he left to his next customer.

Suddenly Gillio relaxed, barking out a loud laugh as he pulled his hands out of his pockets. And just like that the room returns to the way it was, the sudden increase of volume making her jump. People were talking again, drinking and eating as though nothing had happened. The soft alien music of before played, and she noticed that the others were now looking their way, sneaking glances.

Before she could open her mouth to ask her questions, his other hand snapped out, tossing the gemstone at her face. The Calm squawked, barely catching it as she fumbled. She took a deep breath and Gillio looked away, picking up his drink and downing it in one shot again.

She looked down, open her hands to stare at the gemstone that shone against the crack, the bright red stone seemingly average in her hands. She looked up, unsure what to do from here.

Gillio raised an eyebrow as he sipped his drink, his earlier persona back in place as she searched his eyes. The Calm frowned as she lowered her hands, looking around the room one more time.

"I still don't understand why but..." She bit her lip, glancing at the smiling Gillio. "Come with me."

The question was sudden for the both of them, but the Calm didn't falter. She looked him in the eye as she squeezed the gem between her finger and Gillio tensed. He turned slowly, eyeing the small hesitant smile that lit up her face as she bit her lower lip, and his face become passive.

After a moment with Gillio looking intently at her eyes he sighed, slouching down as he chuckled. He ran a hand through his hair as his shoulders sagged.

"I take it you don't plan to go gallivanting around, broadcasting you're every move?"

She hesitated before nodding and he gestured to himself. With a sudden flare his usual hue returned, his skin humming brightly. He glowed as he chuckled. "Might be a bit hard if you have a glow stick besides you Ma'am."

She opened her mouth a few times, an argument against her teeth before she gave up, seeing his bland look of uninterest. The Calm sighed, picking up her duffel bag at her feet as she stood.

She gave Gillio and Kyllaposteratheta one last nod of thanks before she made her way to the door, putting the disguised TARDIS into her shirt pocket before nervously patting it. She was almost out the tavern before Kyllaposteratheta spoke up, shouting over the crowd.

"Oh, and Scellioviscoterostigiamata!" His cheerful voice echoed, and she glanced to the side, a few tables of Lords staring intently at her.

She froze.

How?

_How did they know that?_

She turned around slowly, keeping her face passive as the bartender just smiled brightly, cleaning a glass without a care.

"Yes?"

"When you become famous, no one was here tonight." He nodded his head towards the door, Gillio at his seat shooting her a quick grin before returning to his drink. "I've got a business to run young Lady."

She nodded slowly, eyes darting around the room to find every eye on her, conversations dying down again to hear what she to had to say. She calmed her hearts, relaxing as she smiled brightly.

"A bunch of nobodies, from the house of no one?" She laughed darkly again, her eyes flashing as her palm blistered. "Never heard of it."

The room seemed to bristle before relaxing, and she could feel the buzz of excitement poking her mind as she turned away. Gillio and a few other Lord and ladies laughed, some giving her one last salute before she walked out the door.

* * *

The manual was useless. A complete and utter waste of time and paper.

Boom

Crunch

"Now stop that!"

Woosh

Crack

"No don't do that! Stop trying to eat a planet! Planets are not food!"

Hissing

Sparks

Boom

"No no no! Bad ship! Bad boy! Bad!"

Bam

Boom

"Stop that! How can the secondary fabrications operation panel be on fire! You don't even have a fabrication operation panel!"

Boom

Crunch

Crack

The Calm screamed, hanging on for dear life as the ceiling became the floor and the floor turned into the ceiling. She dangled from the center console as she kicked, cursing up a storm. Sparks flew everywhere as multiple explosions went off around her, pieces of the wall flying in different directions as half a dozen lights flashed urgently on the dash. The cluster bell tolled loudly as the room shook and in the background she could hear the ship snarling.

She growled back, not willing to give up as she reached for the differential fifth chamber with hope of stabilizing the flight pattern, only to yelp as the dimensions changed back, slamming her against the floor as the room turned around again. She gasped in pain as the instruction manual came flying out of nowhere, hitting her right in the face.

"Stop it!" She hissed, pointing at the ceiling as she clung to a chair so she wouldn't be thrown across the room. "Stop throwing a tantrum! And if you try to drown me again, I will swear upon Rassilon!"

The TARDIS creaked dangerously as it threw itself against the sides fo the time vortex, the sound of metal warping dangerously banged painfully in her head as she opened the book again, flipping desperately for a solution.

"I just want to go to Earth!" She screamed, reaching again for the right lever. "I'm not trying to do anything else! Just go to twenty-first century Earth and we can figure this out! Just be a good ship and-"

Boom

Crunch

She screamed as everything shook, the walls vibrating as the cluster bell rung, the room blaring. She gave up on trying to reach, instead hanging on with everything as the ship spiralled out of control. She curled her body around the anchored chair as the TARDIS continued to snarl, squeezing her eyes shut as multiple objects flew though the air.

"Please! Please! Just this once!" She screamed as she shielded herself the best she could, trying to brace herself for impact. "I'm not going to throw you a cupboard, or hit you with a hammer, or try to fix you, or hurt you, or call you useless, or broken, or abandon you like the last pilots did! I'm not going to! I'm not like them, I promise! So please! Please!"

An explosion went off right next to her head and she screamed louder, shielding her head with her arm.

"Please! Just this once let me fly you! Just please!" She opened her eyes, looking at the console in desperation. _"Pretty please!"_

The shaking stopped.

The bell stopped. The warning lights all turned off as the room returned to its previous calm lighting, the console gears turning off. A nice, gentle hum took the place of the snarling as the soft clicking of the middle filter moving in the middle of the room flowed instead of creaked like it had before.

The flight pattern stabilized as the Calm shakily got off the ground, staring wide eyed as she gaped at the room around her. She sputtered as she took a hesitant step towards the lever, touching it nervously.

She pulled it down easily, the once unmovable gear shifting smoothly in her hand. She gaped at the calming blinking blue lights on the dash, sputtering.

"You-" She squeaked, pushing the right buttons as the ship flew smoothly. "All I had to do was say 'pretty please'? Pretty please, that's it!? Just _Pretty please!?" _She hissed, glaring up at the ceiling.

"You- You- You!" She sputtered as she quickly set the coordinates needed, pointing at the modem. She gaped and stuttered as she looked in disbelief around the room.

"No wonder he just gave you to me!" She looked at the floor in aghast horror. "You're completely mental!"

The room suddenly shifted violently and the Calm was thrown to the floor with a shrill squeal. She groaned as she rubbed the back of her head, a large lump already forming as she curled into a protective ball. One of the overhead screens flashed on, showing her the trajectory of flight as it dinged, as she looked up.

Well, at least she was heading in the right direction. That meant something, didn't it?

"Earth," She groaned in pain, "how lovely."

* * *

End. Of Chapter 1.5. Onwards to Chapter two!

**A/N:** Oh sweet sweet baby lord jesus, that took so much longer than I thought it would. It's 7,500 words long! That's.. That's just- Ugh. Holy cow. Writing two stories at once is slightly straining, but it keep the idea's flowing. Anyway, what do you guys think of the Calm, is she neat? Interesting. incredibly dull? Annoying? Relatable? Hmmm... I guess I should just keep writing until I know for sure.

So let's recap- Scellioviscoterostigiamata is a normal stuffy Time Lady who goes to work, touches a crack on the schism, then she becomes The Calm and heads off to change reality. She meets some friendly faces, some not so much, and gets her own TARDIS too! Yowzah. That's not too complicated, is it?

Onward to the official chapter two!

Next time on 'Mixed Minds' our Time Lady meets the ever wonderful Ninth Doctor! Hurray! Next stop: 'Billie Piper, er sorry, I mean Rose!"

AxidentlGoddess: Really?! Woah, that... that's amazing! THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

EmmieRaeJean: I try to update at least once every two weeks or so. Sometimes it might take longer because parts of the story just don't want to come out the way I want though...D; But I'll give it my all!

MinecraftLover00: hehehehe, thanks!

candydivine: (throws up a thumbs up) Thanks!

Crazycuz: Good! Ha! Just kidding, I hope that I can clear up some of your confusion soon. I don't want you to get irritated with me!

So please everyone, please Review and tell me what you think of this so far! Is it too wordy, too plain, or too damn confusing!? I want to know! I neeeed to know you guys!

Ugh.

Untill next time! Happy reading everyone!


End file.
